Team China all out of answers

Rocky road

With Italian World Cup winner Marcello Lippi at the helm, China kicked off its qualifying campaign with a 5-0 triumph over the Maldives in September 2019. However, a 2-1 defeat to Syria two months later prompted Lippi to call time on his second stint in charge, with Li Tie installed as the Italian's successor in January 2020.

Despite challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, former Everton midfielder Li Tie enjoyed some initial success, helping Team China secure a place in the final phase of Asian zone qualifying thanks to a 3-1 victory over Syria in Sharjah in June last year.

However, China repeatedly struggled against stronger teams in the final phase, and in December, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) accepted Li Tie's resignation amid heavy criticism of the head coach, with Wuhan FC head coach Li Xiaopeng appointed as his replacement.

"Frankly speaking, Li Xiaopeng caught a hot potato from Li Tie, and this was never going to be an easy job. It's not about trust issues with the coach or about the coach's personal ability. It's actually more about timing," read a commentary from Titan Sports' Ma Dexing. "It's not easy to unite Team China under these circumstances. Just like many pundits predicted, Li Xiaopeng couldn't lead Team China to a single win in the last four qualifiers.

"Where is the hope? And what does the future hold for this team? Even if Team China played Oman and Vietnam 10 more times, I'm not sure we would win a match."

For years, numerous solutions have been proposed to lift Chinese soccer out of the doldrums－better youth training, improving the domestic leagues, and encouraging young talents to test themselves by playing in more competitive foreign leagues.

However, attempts to improve the domestic leagues have been curtailed by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and clubs' recent financial problems, according to former Team China and Manchester City star Sun Jihai, who is now a member of the national squad's coaching staff.

Introducing naturalized players to the national team has also been touted as a way to improve the squad's quality－but while the policy's effectiveness is up for debate, it has ultimately fallen short of earning Team China a World Cup ticket.

Moreover, naturalized forwards Ai Kesen (aka Elkeson), Luo Guofu (aka Aloisio), Fei Nanduo (aka Fernandinho) and Alan have all terminated their contracts with Chinese Super League club Guangzhou FC, thereby putting their international futures in doubt. It remains unclear if the CFA will persevere down the naturalization route, with many observers now urging the squad to trust in homegrown youth players.

"As a young player, I still need to improve a lot and need to shoulder more responsibilities. So, I hope my generation of players can develop fast enough and achieve the goals we are not able to achieve now," said 21-year-old Chinese defender Zhu Chenjie. "I hope the younger kids can keep their love and passion for soccer."